AIBU to "demand" an extraction?

[bjf1]

My dentist keeps insisting that she can 'save' my bad tooth. For six or more months now she has filled and drilled and refused my pleas to just take the bloody thing out.
I am getting really pissed off with this now as it flares up every month or so and I end up self medicating on prescription painkillers AND alcohol just to get through the pain.
I am seriously considering just going to another dental practice and offering to pay any amount of cash just to get it removed.
Can I actually do this and AIBU or is my dentist (who clearly seems to gain great pleasure in seeing my pain?
Please note: I am now unable to eat anything again so am in a very bad mood

You don't need to justify your teeth to anyone...let alone to someone you are paying to fix them.

I think a lot of phobia comes from childhood, When I was younger I was told I was going for a check up, The dentist put all the tools to the side and told me nothing was going to happen. I was then held down by dentistry nurses and had an anesthetic mask shoved on my face whilst screaming and kicking as I had no idea what was happening. This happened twice.

I am TERRIFIED of the dentist.

Golly I am just hijacking away tonight, Apologies.

In my experience, patients who have suffered trauma are far less likely to call me an evil bitch than those who could have prevented/lessened their dental problems by not waiting until they were in acute pain to get it treated.

OP I know this doesn't apply to you. You still havent said exactly what your dentist said when you asked her to take the tooth out.

ZigZag - I think dentists mostly DO view their job objectively and don't make judgements, but understandably take exception to people who blame them and call them names for just trying to help solve problems of their own making. Grumpy is absolutely right that it's frustrating to be called a bitch by someone who has done nothing to help themselves and takes no responsibility for the state of their own mouth. These are often the same people that will threaten to sue you at the drop of a hat too because your magic wand isn't working.

I waited until i was in acute pain to visit my dentist [bublush] and it was because i had a horrible dentist when i was 12 that i stopped seeing dentists all together.Im sorry but she was.She knew i was a needle phobic and said something along the lines of to stop being a baby because i was in hysterics when she tried to put a needle in my arm.Third time i went she managed to get it in me after promising it wouldnt hurt and it was the worste thing ive ever felt.Thankfully i moved and have new dentists who are lovely and who are patient with me and hold my hand and try and put me at ease whilst having another put a needle in.I had a few teeth taken out at the back.I was upset at first but feel so much better for it .Si i can understand your desire to have extraction.The pain is awful

I think it must be obvious that the dentist doesn't want to cause you pain, or is evil, or nasty, but that dental work can often be painful due to the nature of teeth needing work done. Whenever I've said I am afraid of going to the dentist, it's not the dentist himself, but the scary drills and needles in my gob, and the pain that is inherent with having cavities, impacted wisdom teeth, and receding gums that are prone to infection (yeah thanks weak immune system, grrr).

Perhaps some dentists don't have a great bedside chairside manner, but that doesn't mean that they are literally evil. My dentist is a lovely man, really pleasant, in a brand new surgery, with a nice receptionist (I KNOW!), who finally after 10 years of a wisdom tooth giving me trouble referred me and had it out in a month. He listens and you make the decision together rather than being told.

I would say that over the years I have had some dentists I don't really like much, so would urge you to see if you can get a dentist you feel more comfortable with if yours is meaning the experience is so unpleasant.

Every time I have asked the dentist why she can't just remove it, her answer is that she can save it. Never mind the pain I'm going through.

You can insist she takes it out.

I had a dodgy tooth and my dentist initially wanted to do root canal on it. It was not that long before my wedding. She did one session, but after that I decided I really didn't want the fecking thing to be dragging out over my hen night, wedding and honeymoon - I was worried the temporary filling would fall out or it would start to get sore again. So I said I just really, really, wanted it out, and it got taken out.

Is there a dental hospital near you you can go to? The one near here is famous for doing extractions!

If you have requested that the toothe is removed and dentist keeps messing around with tooth at your expense, then she is making easy money.

ring the dentist, explain you want it removed and you don't want an appointment unless they will remove tooth. explain you will need to go elsewhere to get tooth removed otherwise.

Why don't you just go somewhere else?

I would do what skybluepearl said. That should sort it one way or the other.